Vice President Vacancy

From the good news/bad news department… VP Colin Large Leaves NM for MA

The bad news is NMTESOL lost our Vice President Colin Large, but the good news is that he is moving on to bigger and better things. Over the summer, when informed that he was not selected to be the permanent director of the Center for English Language Programs (CELP) at New Mexico State University, he quickly got hired as the Associate Director of the Center for English Language and Orientation Programs (CELOP) at Boston University. In his own words, “I decided to go to Boston because Vanna let me buy another vowel.”

Colin joined the NMTESOL Board after the annual membership meeting in January 2014. He made a number of trips from Las Cruces to Albuquerque for various NMTESOL events, including our spring workshops at CNM and various meetings. For his biggest contribution to the association, however, he could stay at home. Colin organized our first Roadshow Workshop at NMSU in May 2015 (see the Summer 2015 newsletter for more details). That was a particularly memorable event because 40 Ecuadorian teachers of English who were studying at NMSU then were able to attend the workshop too.

When leaving NMTESOL, Colin offered these thoughts to his New Mexican colleagues: “I would encourage the membership to get involved with the leadership of the association. In general, teachers have a difficult time assuming leadership roles – the field is to a certain degree an egalitarian field. However, it is really important that the members get involved. Without that involvement, it is very difficult to improve the field. One of the best avenues for professional development is through peer education. We all have something to learn from one another.”

The Board and membership of NMTESOL wish Colin and his family the best in Boston!

Looking ahead: If you or someone you know is interested in serving on the NMTESOL Board as Vice President, please contact the association.